Thursday, October 29, 2015

Alphabet’s Google to Fold Chrome Operating System Into Android - WSJ

"Android is the world’s most widely used operating system, powering more than one billion phones and other devices made by dozens of companies. Chrome powers personal computers, most often laptops, called Chromebooks. They are niche players, accounting for less than 3% of PCs according to research firm IDC.

Google’s new version of Android will also run PCs, giving users access to Google’s Play store, which offers more than one million apps, the people familiar with the matter said. Google wants to get its software and moneymaking services such as Search and YouTube on as many devices as possible. It also hopes to curry favor with independent developers, whose apps will work on more devices with fewer modifications.

Chromebooks will get a new, as yet undetermined name, the people familiar with the matter said. Google plans to retain the Chrome name for its Internet browser, which runs on both PCs and mobile devices, they said."